Spielberg to remake West Side Story

[Terri Schehr]

9 minutes ago, MikeD said:

 

Hey, we are getting "Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again" this year. What MORE could you want?    

 

Good Lord.  

[Terri Schehr]

38 minutes ago, Eleran said:

As opposed to '61, when the actors for both Maria and Tony had to be dubbed over with real singers?

Of note, Bernstein did a recording in '85 with opera singers (Kiri Te Kanawa and Jose Carerras) ... it wasn't entirely a success.

I have the CD and the DVD.  Treasured. 

[Lance]

47 minutes ago, glory said:

Can't imagine how Spielberg makes this one WITHOUT changing the story. All his movies are about the righteous man versus the sinister establishment. In WSS, Jets and Sharks are both wrong. Spielberg isn't usually so even-handed (or in the case of Munich, historically accurate). Nor am I sure the hopeful overtones of the ending will play to his taste. We'll see. 

Biggest concern might be the music. That score is one of the greatest ever (which is why I'm fine with corps giving it a go). Will he be content to let greatness be? Or will he muck it up?

HH

For me, WSS's story is sympathetic to both Sharks and Jets, and is instead highly critical of the society, itself, that they're forced into. 

"You make this world lousy" / "That's the way we found it, doc" is one of the more poignant exchanges in the play. 

It was no accident that the girl desperate to join a gang rather than become a prostitute was called "Anybody's". What were the options for 16-17 year old girls from broken homes in in 1950's inner cities?  "Gee, Officer Krupke" has scathing social commentary about the grotesqueness of the juvenile justice system,all hidden behind a facade of circus-like music. "America" had by far the most biting social commentary about racism of any musical in the 20th century up to the mid 1950s, again, hidden behind a seemingly joyous/goofy music book. These were things that nobody talked about back then.  Hell, if we want to get really meta about it, just look at the casting for the movie version.

I halfway agree with what you said about Spielberg films always being about a righteous man vs the sinister establishment.  The sinister establishment part, sure, almost always. But the righteous man part?  It's oftentimes true, but I think he's shown quite a bit of flexibility there.  Catch Me if You Can had a criminal as the protagonist. Bridge of Spies was about protecting a Russian spy, and I think you could make an argument that Hanks and Rylance were co-protagonists. 

As a means of criticizing the still sinister establishment (i.e. racism, poverty), doing a remake of WSS seems like it could be right up Spielberg's ally to me. Kushner is just the type of guy who can modernize the book. 

 

 

Edited January 26, 2018 by Lance

[MikeD]

16 hours ago, Lance said:

I saw that Tony Kushner is writing a new book for it, and I guess I"m okay with it?  HOPING they keep most of the music and choreography the same. 

As long as it has a Tony and Maria ANYWHERE near as good as Larry Kert and Carol Lawrence, I'll be okay with it. 

The last Broadway revival had an awful Tony, and I've always felt that the dubbing for both Wood and Beymer in the film version made all of their scenes feel super plastic. 

 

 

I really loved Karen Olivo (Anita) and Josephine Scaglione (Maria).  "I Feel Pretty" sung in Spanish was a very nice touch to me. I attended the dress rehearsal and Arthur Laurents came out and did a pre-show overview to us. My daughter-in-law was a production assistant on the show.

[Terri Schehr]

3 hours ago, DBYoung said:

Let's not forget the movie version of Mama Mia.  Dear lord.

I saw the stage production last year.  It was part of my theater subscription.  Not my favorite. 

[Lance]

1 minute ago, MikeD said:

 

I really loved Karen Olivo (Anita) and Josephine Scaglione (Maria).  "I Feel Pretty" sung in Spanish was a very nice touch to me. I attended the dress rehearsal and Arthur Laurents came out and did a pre-show overview to us. My daughter-in-law was a production assistant on the show.

Yeah, they were both amazing in their roles. 

That's awesome that your daughter in law was a production assistant. 

And I'm definitely hoping that Spielberg takes a cue from that production by having some (or even expanding the use of) Spanish lyrics.  

[BRASSO]

14 minutes ago, Lance said:

For me, WSS's story is sympathetic to both Sharks and Jets, and is instead highly critical of the society, itself, that they're forced into. 

"You make this world lousy" / "That's the way we found it, doc" is one of the more poignant exchanges in the play. 

It was no accident that the girl desperate to join a gang rather than become a prostitute was called "Anybody's". What were the options for 16-17 year old girls from broken homes in in 1950's inner cities?  "Gee, Officer Krupke" has scathing social commentary about the grotesqueness of the juvenile justice system,all hidden behind a facade of circus-like music. "America" had by far the most biting social commentary about racism of any musical in the 20th century up to the mid 1950s, again, hidden behind a seemingly joyous/goofy music book. These were things that nobody talked about back then.  Hell, if we want to get really meta about it, just look at the casting for the movie version.

I halfway agree with what you said about Spielberg films always being about a righteous man vs the sinister establishment.  The sinister establishment part, sure, almost always. But the righteous man part?  It's oftentimes true, but I think he's shown quite a bit of flexibility there.  Catch Me if You Can had a criminal as the protagonist. Bridge of Spies was about protecting a Russian spy, and I think you could make an argument that Hanks and Rylance were co-protagonists. 

As a means of criticizing the still sinister establishment (i.e. racism, poverty), doing a remake of WSS seems like it could be right up Spielberg's ally to me. 

 

 

 While its true that the storyline had as its backdrop, its biting social commentary, at its fundamental core WSS was essentially a Love Story. And what made it so iconic in its acknowledged greatness as a Play and and later Film was really Leonard Bernstein's Musical score, imo..

Edited January 26, 2018 by BRASSO

[glory]

5 minutes ago, Lance said:

...As a means of criticizing the still sinister establishment (i.e. racism, poverty), doing a remake of WSS seems like it could be right up Spielberg's ally to me. Kushner is just the type of guy who can modernize the book. 

No doubt WSS is critical of the society that created the gang environment and thus the gangs. Where i think Speilberg will struggle, and why I worry he'll alter the story, is WSS as it was written doesn't have the obvious establishment bad guy characters that Bridge of Spies did in the CIA guys or Schindler did in the Nazis or Jaws did in the mayor and business community. WSS has conflict with the establishment at its core. But the script is about conflict between the unfortunates. That's not what Spielberg does.

HH

[Eleran]

13 minutes ago, Terri Schehr said:

I have the CD and the DVD.  Treasured. 

Maria sounding English and Tony sounding Latin ... topsy turvy world!

[Lance]

3 minutes ago, glory said:

No doubt WSS is critical of the society that created the gang environment and thus the gangs. Where i think Speilberg will struggle, and why I worry he'll alter the story, is WSS as it was written doesn't have the obvious establishment bad guy characters that Bridge of Spies did in the CIA guys or Schindler did in the Nazis or Jaws did in the mayor and business community. WSS has conflict with the establishment at its core. But the script is about conflict between the unfortunates. That's not what Spielberg does.

HH

I see what you're saying. 

I'm hoping he pulls it off, though. 

I show WSS to all of my freshman classes every year before we start Romeo and Juliet, and I'd love to have a more modern version that still keeps most of the music and choreography.  I literally watch it 3 or 4 times every year, lol.